Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-05

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows the manufacturing process for making sugar from sugar cane.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

How sugar is produced from sugar cane

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The picture illustrate the manufacturing method for making sugar from sugar cane.

Overall, the picture gives some information about this topic. There are many steps for making sugar from sugar cane. First step, sugar canes are growing for 12 to 18 months. After this, next step is harvesting. The farmers are harvesting the sugar canes. After harvest, we are crushing the sugar canes and convert into the juice. The juice is purify through limestone filter.

After purify, the juice is heating at high flame the juice become evaporate and become to a syrup. The six step is centrifuge. In this process, we separates sugar crystals from syrup. This process is very longer then the evaporator. The last steps for making sugar from sugar canes is drying and cooling. In this process, we are drying the sugar and also cooling the sugar. In this process, we are manufacturing the sugar from sugar canes.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response attempts to cover all parts of the diagram illustrating the sugar production process, but some stages are under-developed or inaccurately described. While the general sequence is outlined from growing to drying and cooling, the overview is very basic ("The picture gives some information about this topic"), failing to clearly highlight the main features such as the two harvesting methods or the continuous transformation from solid to liquid and back to crystals. Furthermore, the description includes some irrelevant or inaccurate commentary, such as stating "This process is very longer then the evaporator," which misinterprets the static diagram. To reach a higher level, the writer needs to provide a more comprehensive overview and ensure all key stages are described with greater precision.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The text displays a coherent overall arrangement by following the chronological order of the diagram steps. However, cohesion is often mechanical and repetitive, relying heavily on basic sequence markers like "After this," "After harvest," and "After purify." Paragraphing is also problematic, as the entire response is clumped together into a single block of text or poorly separated, lacking a distinct introductory overview paragraph separate from the main body steps. Reference words are sometimes unclear, and the mechanical transitions hinder the flow of ideas. To improve, the writer should use a wider variety of cohesive devices more flexibly and organize the report into logical paragraphs, such as separating the agricultural phase from the industrial processing phase.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is limited and minimally adequate for the task. The writer successfully employs some process-related terms derived directly from the prompt, such as "harvesting," "crushing," "limestone filter," "evaporator," and "centrifuge." However, there are noticeable lexical errors and awkward word formations throughout, such as "The picture illustrate" (should be illustrates), "The juice is purify" (should be purified), and the unnatural phrasing "heating at high flame the juice become evaporate." There is also an over-reliance on basic vocabulary with repetitive structures. To achieve a higher band, the writer must incorporate a wider range of less common lexical items with correct word forms and demonstrate better precision in word choice and collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response demonstrates a limited range of grammatical structures, relying primarily on simple sentences with frequent errors. While there are some attempts at complex forms, these are often faulty, such as "After purify, the juice is heating at high flame the juice become evaporate and become to a syrup." There are frequent errors in verb tenses, voice, and agreement, including "sugar canes are growing" (present continuous used for a habitual process), "we are crushing" (unnecessary shift to first-person plural active voice instead of the passive voice appropriate for scientific processes), and missing articles or incorrect prepositions. These frequent grammatical errors can cause some difficulty for the reader and restrict the response to a lower band. To improve, the writer needs to exercise better control over passive voice constructions, tense consistency, and complex sentence patterns.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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